O’Conall Street

The shinners have been roasted by the leaders of Irish business over their opposition to the Lisbon Treaty. In a press release issued late last week IBEC says:

“IBEC, the group that represents Irish business, today strongly dismissed claims by Sinn Fein that the Lisbon Treaty is bad for Irish business. It said Sinn Fein had absolutely no credibility when it came to matters relating to the Irish economy and could not be trusted on the issue.

IBEC Director of EU and International Affairs Brendan Butler said: “From a business perspective, the Lisbon Treaty is a very good deal. The Irish economy has been a major beneficiary of membership of the EU and the Lisbon Treaty will further support Irish business and jobs.

Mr Butler was responding to a claim today by Sinn Fein that the Lisbon Treaty will be bad for Irish business. “This is a bit rich from an organisation that not so long ago was calling for an increase in Ireland’s corporation tax rate. Throughout this campaign Sinn Fein has deliberated misled the Irish public on business issues, including Ireland’s veto on tax and on WTO decisions.”

“The Lisbon Reform Treaty will reform how decision are made in the EU so that Europe can remain an engine for economic growth and prosperity. The Treaty will enable the EU to respond faster to the new challenges ahead, such as energy security, the rise of India and China as economic forces, and climate change. It is a very good deal for Ireland and should be supported,” said Mr Butler.

There are, according to Mr Butler, many provisions in the Treaty that support jobs and the economy, and below are three examples:

“The Lisbon Treaty for the first time gives a role to the EU in terms of energy security. It provides for cooperation between member states when it comes to difficulties in energy supply and also promotes the interconnection of energy networks. In the current environment of rising prices, concerns regarding medium term supply levels and our reliance on fossil fuels, a coordinated approach to energy supply must be a big win for an Island economy the furthest away from the source of such fuels.

“As an open economy that exports almost 90% of everything we produce the Lisbon Treaty proposals to improve transport infrastructure across member states must be welcomed . Transport costs are a huge and increasing issue for Irish exporting companies and any measures that allow us to get our goods and services to market quicker and cheaper have to be welcomed.

“The third area relates to the potential for Irish companies in relation to the single market. There remain substantial additional business opportunities for Irish companies in areas such as financial, telecoms, energy and environmental services. Five years ago we had no exports in environmental services into the EU, last year our exports were €105 million. Overall our exports into the EU member states increased from €44 billion ten years ago to €88 billion last year. Ratification of the Lisbon Treaty will give a significant boost the completion of the internal market particularly in relation to services and this has to be good for Irish business and jobs.

Mr Butler pointed out that IBEC was not alone in calling for a Yes vote in the Lisbon Treaty. Thirty six other business organisations, including,the American Chamber of Commerce, the Small Firms Association, Chambers Ireland and the Irish Exporters Association have come together and formed the Business Alliance for Europe. All 36 organisations which represent Ireland’s 250,000 businesses employing almost 2 million people are actively campaigning for a yes vote.”

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008 at 8:51 am and is filed under Business, Corporate Communications, Current Affairs, Public Affairs, Public Relations, Technology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.